Webby Come Lately

In June, This is True celebrates 21 years online — a pioneer in online publishing that predates Facebook, Google, Amazon, and the vast majority of other web sites you can find online today.And, for that matter, the Webby Awards, given annually for excellence on the Internet by The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. They started giving them in 1996, so that’s pretty long-lived, in online years — but I still beat them online by a mile. Yet they only just now came around to recognizing True — not with a nomination for an award, mind you, but as an “Official Honoree”. I lost out in the “real” nominations to such sites as the “Museum of Selfies” and “Invisible Girlfriend” (“Finally. A girlfriend your friends can believe in” …even though they make her up for you. Yep, really.) But huge respect for nominee War Ink, a documentary site for Iraq and Afghanistan war vets who tell their stories via, or accompanied by, their tattoos. Spectacular …but I’m unclear why it’s categorized as “weird.”

The Webbys’ “PR Tips” suggest that I “MAKE YOUR HONREE [sic] STATUS PART OF YOUR MARKETING STRATEGY.” How? Well, “Take out an ad in your local newspaper” — yes, really! Why, hundreds of people still read newspapers! — or “a favorite trade magazine.” Yeah, well, I’m not aware of a trade magazine for “weird” — or even for email newsletters that have profitably survived for 21 years. But hey: it’s nice to be recognized! And rather than take out ads, I’m telling you first. I’ll get around to their other suggestions, like “Dont [sic] forget to tell your friends and followers about your success. Tweet about your win using #Webbys to connect with other Honorees.” later. Much later.

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6 Comments on “Webby Come Lately”

So now they have given you an award they want you to spend your money advertising them giving you this award? I might drop my advertising and just give out awards, has to be cheaper. —And there’s no award — I’m not even nominated! Pretty good gig if you can get it. -rc

Sounds like one of those Who’s Who books that used to send me mail telling me that they would put my name in a book and I could buy a copy of it. —Hopefully it’s better than that. It all rests on how much “The Academy” is respected. The “Who’s Who” folks aren’t — at least, not anymore! -rc

My first thought was that I’d tell you “Well, congratulations, anyway…”

But I think I’ll tell them that I’ll do so when I read about it on the news — that is, either when the award actually has become newsworthy, or when THEY pay to have it in the papers or online somewhere.

On another tack, I looked at their website. Looking at the “Honorees” seemed to require javascript (invented by Brendan Eich, haven’t you heard?) and I had it turned off. I won’t turn it on for an untrusted site.

But I can dump the source of the site and look at the honoree list anyway. … Egad, so now you are in the company of great sites like PornBurger and HeggiesPizza.com?

(On another note, I have come into some money, so expect my upgrade to Premium next Wednesday, or sooner.) —Thanks, Tom! -rc

The Webbies may be blind, but your faithful readers aren’t. Let’s all stand up and clap for Randy and This is True.

PS: I first read you in print newspapers and, under various email addresses, for most of those 21 years online. My favourite fairy tale is ‘The Emperor With No Clothes’. I’ve asked for it to read at my funeral. Cheers, Randy. Keep up the thought-provoking activities. — TRUE used to be in several newspapers in several different countries, but with the decline of print, it’s not in any anymore (not legally, anyway: let me know if you see it anywhere!) -rc

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